AI's race for progress: are warnings about risks being drowned out
More cases are surfacing of artificial intelligence acting autonomously, while US President Donald Trump has said his administration will not stand in the way of the technology's development. A Latvian Television programme examines how well humans actually control AI systems.
In recent times, more and more cases have come to light in which artificial intelligence has acted autonomously, that is, without direct human control. Alongside these cases, warnings are also being voiced about how destructive such autonomous behaviour could become.
Against this backdrop, US President Donald Trump, following a meeting with representatives of leading artificial intelligence companies, stated that his administration does not intend to place any obstacles in the way of the technology's further development. This suggests that political will in the United States is currently focused on supporting the technology's rapid growth rather than restricting it.
The question of control
Latvian Television's programme "Pasaules panorāma" (World Panorama) has examined the question of how far people actually manage to control artificial intelligence systems at their current stage of development. The programme also looks at whether there is real grounding behind the most serious warnings — namely, that artificial intelligence could pose an existential threat to humanity in the near future.
The question of balancing the pace of technological progress against safety considerations has become increasingly relevant recently, as the use of autonomous AI systems is expanding faster than the mechanisms for overseeing and securing them are being developed.
